Don't Get Dead | TWD | Volume 1

[29] Me? A Mechanic? Weird

Lori came back to the camp shortly after me and Carl, tears in her eyes, but she managed to take Carl back to their tent, allowing me the privacy I needed to go to my tent. Ignoring anyone else around camp, I just made my way to my tent and crawled inside as quickly as possible.

When I got back to my tent and laid down on the blankets slayed across the ground, all I did was sob. My hand rubbed at my chest, the other arm covering my face as I cried and cried into my bare arm. My lips quivered as I tried to hold back my crying, but it only burst out louder than before, making me bury my head in my pillow, my arms wrapping around under it as I rolled onto my stomach.

My mind kept returning to Dale, the injury, and how it looked like he had been ripped open. I would have thrown up if I had eaten anything that day, but my stomach churned the emptiness uncomfortably. It was more horrifying than anything else I had seen since being with the group, and it was only made worse that I had spent so much time around him.

It was killing me. The last I spoke to Dale was arguing about what to do with Randall, a conversation in which I was frustrated, annoyed, and harsh. If I had known, I would have tried keeping my cool, but it was too late. And then there was the discussion, where Andrea was the only person who could stand up for Dale.

I wish I had thought harder about other ways to deal with Randall than killing him, but even now, I was still scared of Randall and his group after what happened. I still didn't want him here; I still didn't want to deal with the consequences of letting him go. Even though Dale fought hard, I still couldn't bring myself to agree with his points, even now. But after tonight, I didn't want to see him die. If it was still an option, I would go through with it, but my brain had been trying to think of another solution to no avail.

I didn't know how long I had been there, hiding in my tent, but the sun had peaked over the horizon, lighting the tent in an orange glow. A glow that before would have heated the fabric room to the unbearable point and was now barely warming up the area around me. I didn't reach for my blanket or anything that would bring me warmth because I couldn't move.

It was quiet around camp, and I assumed it was mainly because everyone was helping move Dale to his grave. They would have another funeral, and I would attend out of respect, but I wouldn't like it. I wasn't sure how many more I could attend before it broke me, but I felt it was getting close.

I stopped crying eventually, laying in the uneasy silence that had settled around me. My chest was heavy, like a weight was pressing down on me, preventing me from breathing. I pulled a leg up to my chest, leaving the other extended across the room's length.

I was glad I had this time, I knew that there would be work to be done that day, and so I needed the option to be alone for a while before I had to face the rest of the group. They would want to check the fences and where the walker could have gotten onto the land. There would be more chores and work that Rick would hand out later in the day, and I would have to help, even if I didn't want to.

Footsteps neared my tent, and the door was slowly unzipped by whoever was there. I didn't turn to look or make any effort to move as the person peered in.

"Hey," Maggie knelt down in the doorway of my tent, her hand squeezing my leg to see if I was awake or not. I lifted my head, looking at her over my shoulder, and she let go, shifting her weight, so she was down on one knee. "They're about to start the ceremony."

All I could do was nod, but still, I stood up. Maggie waited for me to grab my grey hoodie and pull it over my head, and when I was ready, she placed her hand on my shoulder and walked me down to the graves.

Dale was buried where we had the last funeral, off to the side of the barn, next to Sophia. Rocks and stones had been gathered to outline where the graves had been filled in, and Dale's was no different.